NORTH BAY -- As hospitals and health care workers across world battle COVID-19, one local facility, the North Bay Regional Health Centre is giving people a behind-the-scenes look at how its assessment centre operates.
The assessment centre is one of the key parts in detecting if a patient has picked up COVID-19.
The video highlights the staff working at the centre, inside the hospital and how patients are tested.
"We've used our emergency department for about a week and then we expanded to this much more enhanced unit," said Dr. Ian Cowan, who is the Assessment Centre Medical Doctor in the video.
If an individual is exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19, they are asked to call the health unit right away.
After the phone call with the health unit, the patient could be referred to a nearby assessment centre for a test.
When the patient arrives, they are greeted by the hospital's health care team which is made up of doctors, clerks and nurses.
The patient is registered and the test begins.
"We're the ones that actually decide whether they require a nasopharyngeal swab which is a small device which is inserted into your nose and from there we collect a sample," said Cowan in the video.
Since the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit covers a large area, their public health team works in conjunction with other health care providers, which have four planned assessment centres set up in the district.
The first positive case in the district was confirmed on Thursday.
Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Jim Chirico said at the media conference that two of the assessment centres will be up and running very soon.
"The ones in West Nipissing and Mattawa. Those two are going to up and running shortly," said Chirico on Thursday.
"The two that are up and running are in North Bay at the North Bay Regional Health Centre and in Parry Sound at the Parry Sound Mall."
There are a total of five confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in the district at this time, but the health unit expects that number to grow in the coming weeks.
